Monday, April 18, 2011

Backstage Pass, hot! hot! hot!

Backstage Pass (Sinners on Tour, #1)Backstage Pass by Olivia Cunning

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I’ve loved hot rocker, metal-type guys ever since I can remember, so naturally this book appealed to me. There is a lot of sex in this book. A LOT. Somehow it never gets bored or trite. What was interesting, although the sex is all well and good, I really was interested in the characters and liked all of the characters. Probably the first time I have read a book like this and been more interested in the characters, what they were going to do next and how they would resolve their issues, than all the hot sex! I could not put this book down.



I loved Myrna and Brian. Also, loved the other Sinners. Although there are a lot of characters, the writer does an excellent job of giving them all a separate and distinct personality so you don’t feel like they are all just lumped in together. The parts about the band, touring and the concerts also could have been cheesy, but the writer does such a great job they aren’t. It comes across as real, believable – and fun! I also liked that she doesn’t try to sugar-coat and romanticize these guys. They’re rock stars, they’re horndogs, not chaste Prince Charmings. She manages to convey this without being disgusting. They guys are all amusing and likeable. Definitely looking forward to reading more books by this author.





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Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Finding Inspiration

I do my best writing at night. Late at night. I seem to have trouble settling down to actually write until midnight to 2 a.m. The internet is of course a huge distraction.

I tend to have a couple of things "in play" at any given time. Right now I have four story ideas going. All of them are outlined. One I have about 86 pages finished, and I am really pushing and trying to focus on finishing this one. I like the characters a lot. I like the journey they take together. Another one (which was actually the first story I started in this group) has about 24 pages. I have an idea of where I want to go with it. The other two are maybe a couple of pages each.

Like I said, I have multiple things going at once. I'll come up with an idea. Little things inspire me. Things that happen to me during the day, and I say "what if..." But, I have never actually finished anything. I'm very focused right now I finishing this one story since I am so close. Naturally the closer I get to finishing it, the harder it is to find inspiration. I have all the "key" scenes and conflicts down, but now I want to weave them together so it flows smoothly.

Music is inspiring sometimes. Even though it tends to be a distraction, the internet can also be very helpful for ideas and research.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Sweet Persuasion (Sweet, #2)Sweet Persuasion by Maya Banks

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I'm conflicted on this one. I enjoyed Maya Banks' short story in Four Play, which is why I picked this book up.



It starts off sort of like BDSM-lite. Damon is a little too over-the-top concerned and lovey-dovey for a Dom. The conflict seems overly manufactured, especially towards the end.



However, after lulling you into this sort of watered down fantasy relationship, there's a rather brutal belt whipping scene towards the end that was quite unpleasant given the rest of the story.



I enjoyed the friendship between the three women (I didn't realize this was actually book #2 in a series) but found some of their dialog (especially Julie's) to be kind of forced. There were also these strange short bits involving the friends that were not interesting, and did not move this story along (although I understand they were to set up the next book).



I had a hard time buying the HEA ending since both characters came from such different perspectives and I never felt like they actually resolved their different ideas of what their relationship should be.



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More writing…less thinking.

Some of my favorite authors advise to “write every day” to be sucessful.  You know “put your butt in the chair.”  So every night I usually sit with my lap top.  But I find it’s hard to just force writing or it comes out crappy.  I usually need to be inspired or have a “flow” I am following.  Unfortunately, this means I don’t get a lot of writing done.  I do a lot of staring at my computer screen.  A lot of reviewing what I have already written.  And I think…a lot.
I do a lot of driving for my “day job”.  While sometimes I find it annoying, I find myself rushing from place to place a lot.  I also find it a nice time to just let my mind wander and think.  Think about the story currently kicking around my brain.  Imagine it unfolding, working through plot points I have gotten stuck on.  I think I come up with some great stuff.  By the time I get home, and take care of things and sit down to write though, it’s gone.
So, I am hoping maybe by writing this blog, it will start to get my in the frame of mind to write.  Get the creative juices flowing.
What works for you?

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Hello World!

Autumn Jones Lake is a pen name I plan to use to publish erotic fiction under. I’ve been working on a number of projects and hope to have one ready for submission very soon. I am new to blogging, so go easy on me.  My journey won’t all that be interesting, but it will be a fun [...]